Musical bday adventures!

Absolutely fabulous evening with UkeLenny and Cynthia Lin!

It truly was an amazing weekend that began on Friday night after work when I boarded a crowded Baby Bullet Cal Train and zipped off to San Francisco with my good uke playing friend John! 

John drew this for me! I love it!

We met several of my sf uke rebellion friends in JapanTown for an amazing evening with Uke Lenny and Cynthia Linn...which included a rousing uke singalong, open mic where we all got to play on a stage that glowed bright blow..beautiful funky "nightclub" atmosphere at P'Iana Restaurant yet warm and inviting and we all felt welcome there... Yay for Uke Lenny and Cynthia for doing such a great job!

Then my local San Francisco friend Nancy drove up windy roads through hills and fog in San Francisco to get me and John to the South City train on time! John was hanging on for dear life I think! but Nancy assured is, "this is my town!" and yep, she sure is right! I get it...I sort of feel that way about San Francisco too, although I'm not as knowledgeable of the route she took us as she is!

Celebrating b-days at the beach in Santa Cruz!

The next morning I drove all the way to the beach in Santa Cruz to play ukes with Sons of the Beach -- my songlist yaaayyy! so much fun...carpooled with John and even saw my good friend Rick and his gf Mary Edith there...GOOD times! 

We jammed afterwards with Leonard of course before heading back over the hill to drop John back off and drive all the way to Alameda where I met a group of my uke playing friends at a place I'd never been to before...a Kanikipila to play a lot of traditional Hawaiian songs! Some of my friends from Uke Rebellion go every month...Nancy, Vickie, Becky and Mark. 

Hawaiian Dancers at the Kanikipila

hey there's Steve! it was his first time too. and that dude I've seen in Fremont and SF!

It was a first for me and Steve who also made it. Although I couldn't sing most of the songs, at least I could play along and get a feel for the music...and we even got to eat Hawaiian food (when the elder stops playing music and heads for the food table, everyone follows...) and the people there were gracious, friendly and kind...we did manage to get White Sandy Beach, Hanalei Moon, the Hukilau Song and Peaceful Easy Feeling in! 

Vickie & Rebecca know these songs a lot better than I do, but I still had fun!

Nancy and me! (she kept whispering what songs meant to me...which was super helpful)

But for the most part, I just listened...and played appreciating the Hawaiian culture a bit more. It was a fabulous evening...

On the morning of my birthday, I caught the 8:59 am BART train to San Francisco...to set out on my actual b-day journey. I was alone at first...but that was fine as I knew I wouldn't be for long! While standing on the platform of the Bayfair BART station waiting for my transfer to the San Francisco train, a text message from my awesome friend Diane popped up! I clicked on it not realizing she had sent a voice memo...with her playing uke and singing in her most beautiful melodic voice her special birthday song to me! It was lovely and went on for several minutes...and before the song was over and Diane said, "Happy Birthday, Love you!" everyone on the platform waiting for a BART train KNEW it was my birthday! hehehe! I didn't even know how to stop the voice memo as I'd never received one quite like it via the iPhone before! the ladies behind me giggled the whole time and random people I didn't know wished me happy birthday! I felt so special!!

I got off BART at Montgomery -- it was cool, overcast and foggy even in downtown, but I didn't mind at all...I walked up 2nd street to the Writer's Grotto to attend a final workshop on personal essay writing... we all shared our essays, our personal stories if you will...a room filled with women including Jane Ganahl, our awesome teacher. What struck me as I sat there surrounded by all these writer chicks was that we learn so much from hearing each other's stories...or each other's music. it's not just about sharing our OWN stories...and of course I shared mine -- about Mom's Day when I played uke with my friends at Battery Crosby and had a flashback memory of my mom and the Beatles...but I took away so much from hearing all these other stories...the story of learning to trust a wonderful man who sent this one woman flowers and lavished her with gifts and attention...it took so much for her to finally realize his intentions were good...a painting of a bridge, a plane trip delayed due to storm...and the memory another had of her mom sending her and her siblings to the Nutcracker in san Francisco even though she couldn't afford to go herself...another who unknowingly volunteered to a traditional Japanese wedding...and how it changed her life. and on it goes...

Big Rec...Golden Gate Park

Stow Lake

So I left with all these stories in my head...walking back down 2nd Street to catch the N Judah to 9th and Irving...my old neighborhood..on my birthday. 

Then I walked through Golden Gate Park to the Chinese Pavilion at Strawberry Hill on Stow Lake...an area I'm so intimately familiar with. this was our neighborhood, our territory...me and my brother and sister and our friends...we had a marvelous group that day...including three people who traveled all the way from Sacramento! Yaaayy! it didn't matter that the weather was foggy and overcast...it really wasn't even that cold. It was just a typical summer day in beautiful San Francisco.

We sang and played ukuleles. Several people brought small cakes to celebrate birthdays! 

Dean lights a candle. :)

CAKE...filled with LOVE!

Wow, I didn’t even expect that! Dean brought his ukulele case and there was no ukulele in it, so one of the guys ran home to get an extra ukulele for him to play. We played songs we didn’t know so well and we played songs we knew well – especially towards the end. We ended with Beatles songs. A very nice older gentleman had suddenly showed up and he clapped wildly every time we finished playing a song – especially a Beatles song. He had rollerblades with him. He knew all the words to the Beatles songs.

Father John was touched and moved...and felt compelleed to join us on Beatles songs!

what an amazing man! :) something about him...a vibe..t.hat I cannot explain!

 He told us afterwards that his name was Father John and that he had heard us singing Beatles songs from all the way on the other side of the lake. He said he was so touched and moved that he ran all the way around the lake to the bridge just so he could be right there with us, so he could hear the music. Wow, I had no idea that when we sang and played over there that the music traveled that far – all the way across the lake! Who knew?

What a wonderful group of people! all celebrating and playing ukes together! it was a perfect day!

After our jam, most of made plans to meet over at Pasquale’s Pizza for my birthday dinner! I knew that at least some of my kids were going to join us. My sister was too, but she got sick at the last minute. Pasquale’s Pizza is where we’ve been going for family gatherings for like 30 years – and it’s where my mom and dad ordered pizza when I was a child. 

I was beyond thrilled when Baby Jeremiah and Mama Jen arrived! thank you Jen for bringing baby J...it meant everything in the WORLD to me!!!! :) He loves his "Grandma Mary!"

Uncle Stevie and Baby J! :)

Absolutely PRICELESS! Uncle Stevie and Baby Jeremiah! Ukulele close by... he never took his eyes off that cake! trust me, he wanted to dig in REALLY BADLY! (which he did at his own b-day party!) hehehe!

Meilssa arrived with yellow flowers and a cake that she made specially for my b-day! :) (Stevie and Liezl brought yellow flowers too...everyone knows yellow is my favorite color!)

It’s one of the few restaurants on Irving Street in the inner Sunset that has been there for well over 55 years.

There was plenty of room for us at the restaurant – my friends from Sacramento, Rebecca and Vickie and June joined us. First, Jen showed up with Baby Jeremiah! I was so excited to see my little grandson whom I hadn’t seen since his second birthday party earlier in the month! That was the best birthday gift ever, seeing my little guy who had his sponge bob ukulele with him. Jen says he doesn’t go anywhere without it! Then my older daughter Melissa showed up with yellow flowers and a cake she had baked herself! Oh boy, more cake! But what a cake it was! Stevie and Liezl arrive with more flowers and the evening festivities began filled with fun, laughter, sharing and incredibly good times. 

my beautiful little Grandson!

baby Jeremiah with Grandma Mary and Auntie Liezl! and yes, he calls us by these names...Auntie Liezl, Uncle Stevie and Grandma Mary! he yelled for us constantly making sure we hadn't left...! he was so happy to see all of us! 

Melissa was super excited about me blowing out the candles and cutting into the what looked like a chocolate birthday cake!  

Melissa was anxious to light the candles on the cake! and for me to cut the first piece!

Baby J helps me blow out the candles!

WOW!!!!!!!!!! CHECK IT OUT! BEAUTIFUL RAINBOW CAKE!

SOOO AMAZING AND FABULOUS!!!!! everyone cheered! it was a special moment!

When I cut into it, a cascade of bright colors poured out – it was a beautiful rainbow cake! Wow! I’d never seen anything like it! I was so excited and so was everyone else!

Yay, I finally get to dig in! he chowed down on that cake!

Melissa was so happy and delighted that everyone loved her rainbow cake! SUCCESS! she always seems to know the right thing to do and the right time! 

And no way could the evening end without pictures on the “Pasquale’s Pizza Wall!” It’s a tradition and always must happen. 

the famous Pasquale's Pizza "Wall" pictures! Yay!

The wonderful gang who helped me celebrate my 56th b-day!!! family and friends...Dave, Sue and Dani from Sac'to, Vickie and Becky..Liezl, Jen, baby J, Stevie, Melissa and June!!

here I am surrounded by my wonderful friends and family...ANOTHER famous Pasquale's Pizza Wall picture that will go down in family HISTORY!

This time I was surrounded by not only my family, but some of my wonderful friends as well – and some were there in spirit because of Steam Stock and various other events that were happening that day. But I felt them…and I listened to Diane’s song many times and played it for all of my friends too.

The historic tour...with Baby Jeremiah and the family...through my old neighborhood!

My mom's best friend Vicki lived in this house on the corner of 7th and Judah back in the '60's. she had five kids and we visited here often!

Laguna Honda School...my elementary school. the inside remodeled, new windows, but same school!

Yellow Submarine! this wasn't here in the 1960's...on 6th and Irving. I believe the business began in the '70's. but groovy nonetheless!

Yay, Yellow Submarine! we all live in a yellow submarine!

Baby Jeremiah LOVED the journey and listened intently as I explained where we were...!

UC Market is still there on 3rd and Hugo St! the storefront looks different, but SAME place!

look Baby Jeremiah, this is where I grew up! the only thing that's different is the garage door!

"This is where you grew up Grandma Mary?" Baby J's exact words!!!

here we are at the old "hangout" place, our front porch!

passing on the memories to you baby Jeremiah, and so it continues...onward! :) I won't let the flame die...

david and barry's house.

Stevie, my son, summed it all up like this:  You had a good b-day Mom. You got to play ukes with your friends in Golden Gate Park, have dinner at Pasquale's Pizza with your uke friends and family (this is traditional and historic for my family), eat rainbow cake that Melissa made...and take us all on a "historic tour" of your old neighborhood!” 

Liezl drew this! Love it so much!